System for automatically controlling weight distribution among truck axles

A heavy duty vehicle, comprising:

• a cab portion having a front end and a rear end;
• a steering axle near the cab portion front end;
• a second axle near the cab portion rear end;
• an adjustable wheel supported near the cab portion rear end that is adjustable into a plurality of positions relative to the cab portion;
• a trailer portion having a front end and a rear end;
• a connector near the front end of the trailer portion that is received by the adjustable wheel to connect the trailer portion to the cab portion;
• a trailer axle near the trailer portion rear end;
• a plurality of sensors, each associated with at least one of the axles, that detect an amount of weight at each of the axles, respectively;
• a controller in communication with the sensors that determines the amount of weight at each of the axles, respectively, and determines whether a weight at any one of the axles is outside of a preselected range;
• and
• a mover that automatically adjusts the position of the adjustable wheel to thereby redistribute the weight among the axles responsive to the controller.

A method of controlling weight distribution on a heavy duty vehicle having a plurality of wheel axles and an adjustable wheel, comprising the steps of:

• (A) detecting an amount of weight at each of the axles, respectively;
• (B) determining whether the weight at any of the axles is outside of a preselected range;
• and
• (C) automatically adjusting a position of the adjustable wheel to thereby effectively redistribute the weight among the axles.

A system for controlling weight distribution in a heavy duty vehicle having a plurality of wheel axles and an adjustable wheel that is used for connecting a cab portion to a trailer portion, comprising:

• a plurality of sensors that each comprise an accelerometer, each associated with at least one of the axles, that detects an amount of generally vertical acceleration of each of the axles away from a road surface, the sensors gathering information indicative of an amount of weight at each of the axles, respectively;
• a controller in communication with the sensors that determines the amount of weight at each of the axles and determines whether a weight at any one of the axles is outside of a pre-selected range;
• and
• a mover that automatically adjusts the adjustable wheel to thereby redistribute the weight among the axles responsive to the controller.